'Nigerians Can See Blood Moon Tomorrow From 6:44pm to 9:21pm'

Every time there is an eclipse, the moon passes through the Earth's shadow, but it doesn't always pass through the same part of the shadow.

"The light from the sun goes through the Earth's atmosphere on its way to the moon, and the Earth's atmosphere turns it red in the same way that when the sun goes down, it goes red", astronomy professor Andrew Fabian, of the University of Cambridge, told Reuters.

But the eclipse that will stretch from South America to New Zealand on Friday will last nearly four hours, coming in at three hours and 55 minutes. This is why total lunar eclipses are also known as Blood Moons.

Also, timeanddate.com reported on all eclipses worldwide from 1900 to 2100.

In a lunar eclipse the moon appears darkened as it passes into the Earth's shadow. Stargazers will enjoy a rare celestial display when, on the same night, Mars will shine brighter than it has in 15 years.

"The fact that the Sun appears dark in a filter or that you feel no discomfort does not guarantee that your eyes are safe".

And last but not least: Mars just happens to be in opposition on Friday night as well.

Image The Earth will pass between the sun and the moon for 103 minutes

Following the lunar eclipse, a partial solar eclipse will take place on August 11. Across the world, this eclipse will be visible from Antarctica, Australia, Russia except northernmost parts, Asia, Africa, Scandanavia, Europe, Central and Eastern South America. The total phase will be end after midnight, while the partial phase will be end at 1:19am, Saturday, finally the penumbral phase will end at 2:28am, astronomer at Qatar Calendar House (QCH) Dr Beshir Marzouk said.

This total lunar eclipse will be rare, because it will be the longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century, where the duration of all phases of lunar eclipse will be six hours and fourteen minutes from start time till end time.

The "blood moon" effect is created due to light passing through Earth's atmosphere, which scatters blue light, meaning the moon turns a reddish colour.

"Hence the appellation of "Blood Moon". That way you can see the moon move full into the Earth's shadow.

The moon takes about 27 days to orbit Earth and goes through regular phases in a 29.5-day cycle. The peak of the eclipse will occur at 9.22 p.m. "That'swhy a full moon at or near an apogee adds to the duration of a total lunar eclipse", explained MP Birla Planetarium director (research & academic) Debiprosad Duari. That one lasted for one hour and 16 minutes, according to NASA.

Hence a black shadow will be seen taking a bite out of the moon.

This lunar eclipse is especially interesting because it will be a supermoon, which means that the moon will be the closest to the Earth as it can get during its orbit, essentially giving eager lunar observers two astronomical phenomena in one sitting.

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